Every Woman's Bible Genesis sampler - Flipbook - Page 27
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24 When noah woke up from his stupor, he learned
what Ham, his youngest son, had done. 25 Then he
cursed Canaan, the son of Ham:
“May Canaan be cursed!
May he be the lowest of servants to his
relatives.”
26
Then noah said,
27
“May the Lord, the God of Shem, be blessed,
and may Canaan be his servant!
May God expand the territory of Japheth!
May Japheth share the prosperity of Shem,*
and may Canaan be his servant.”
28 noah lived another 350 years after the great
flood. 29 He lived 950 years, and then he died.
This is the account of the families of Shem,
Ham, and Japheth, the three sons of noah.
Many children were born to them after the great
flood.
10
Descendants of Japheth
The descendants of Japheth were Gomer, Magog,
Madai, Javan, Tubal, Meshech, and Tiras.
3 The descendants of Gomer were Ashkenaz,
Riphath, and Togarmah.
4 The descendants of Javan were Elishah, Tarshish,
Kittim, and Rodanim.* 5 Their descendants
became the seafaring peoples that spread out
to various lands, each identified by its own
language, clan, and national identity.
2
Descendants of Ham
The descendants of Ham were Cush, Mizraim,
Put, and Canaan.
7 The descendants of Cush were Seba, Havilah,
Sabtah, Raamah, and Sabteca. The descendants
of Raamah were Sheba and Dedan.
8 Cush was also the ancestor of nimrod, who
was the first heroic warrior on earth. 9 Since he
was the greatest hunter in the world,* his name
became proverbial. People would say, “This
man is like nimrod, the greatest hunter in the
world.” 10 He built his kingdom in the land of
Babylonia,* with the cities of Babylon, Erech,
GEnESIS 10
Perspective
Where are the women?
SCRIPTURE CONNECTION: GENESIS 10:1-32
Genesis 10 ranks among the most boring parts of
the Bible. So many hard-to-pronounce names!
Are you bothered by how few women appear
in these lists?
The ancient Israelites usually recorded only
male heirs in their genealogies. A genealogy
traced the transfer of wealth from one generation to another and identified tribal membership
through fathers and sons. Without a complex
chart, marriage alliances between clans were
much more difficult to trace. Women were
remembered through stories and songs, rather
than through genealogies. And they took pride
in the social standing of their fathers, husbands,
and sons.
God revealed himself in ways that made sense
to ancient cultures, and he engages with us in
ways that make sense today. Our task is to read
the Bible well in its ancient context, discern how
it reveals God’s character, and then ask how we
can live out its principles in our contexts today.
VIEWPOINTS
6
9:27 Hebrew May he live in the tents of Shem. 10:4 As in some
Hebrew manuscripts and Greek version (see also 1 Chr 1:7);
most Hebrew manuscripts read Dodanim. 10:9 Hebrew a great
hunter before the Lord; also in 10:9b. 10:10 Hebrew Shinar.
10:1-32 The birth of many children after the Flood began to
fulfill God’s purposes for the renewed creation (9:1; see 1:2628). This chapter, often called the Table of Nations, lists seventy
nations descending from Noah’s sons. The total of seventy
names indicates completeness and symbolizes the totality of
the world, which would later be blessed by the descendants
of Abraham (12:3; 18:18). Women are not named because male
heirs were the basis for genealogical records.
HERS: How would an ancient Israelite woman
have felt hearing her husband’s name read aloud
in a list such as this?
MINE: “I love finding women’s names in Bible
genealogies. It is rare, so when one does appear,
it means she is notable in some way. I love to be a
detective and find out why!”
YOURS: Can you imagine life as an ancient
Israelite woman? Would you have been glad to
stay in the shadows? Or would you have longed
to play a bigger role in public life?
CARMEN JOY IMES, PhD, is an author, speaker,
blogger, YouTuber, and serves as associate
professor of Old Testament at Biola University
in California.
